Dr. Rebel.
You need to stop needlessly tilting at windmills (especially after you built them).
Corinne M. Verzoni wrote a 2007 PhD thesis titled “An Assessment of Exploitable Weakness in Universities” which discusses Al-Timimi and GMU Center for Biodefense/Discovery Hall at considerable length.
She quotes me on what was found on KSM’s computer. Now aside from not relying on a more citable source like Susan Schmidt or Barton Gellman at the Washington Post on such an issue, she does beautifully. She discusses Al-Timimi, the nature of the research at Discovery Hall, the vulnerability to theft, the consequences to the University if such a theft were discovered and revealed, equipment that has gone missing (examples are from 2006), evidence of covert research being conducted, the failure to inventory equipment costing less than $2,000, and numerous details providing “I am here” flavor” — such as when and how equipment can easily be walked out the loading dock on weekends. She explains that students have access to lab equipment even for their own work or studies — with such work being totally unmonitored. She also talks about computer security (or rather access to computers). For example, she notes that a researcher can and typically will enter research results in a lab computer that then can be accessed by someone else, and the experiments repeated. The most fascinating aspect of the thesis concerns how a strain of anthrax (such as Pasteur), which is not particularly pathogenic, is nonetheless of concern (and listed now as a select agent) because it can be genetically modified. (You’ll recall the issue of the mailed anthrax having an inverted strain). The building is presently BL-2, BL-2+ with a BL-3 contemplated. But note that the Ames strain (in liquid form) was a BL-2 agent. I would have Zack send you the thesis when he gets back but I know how opposed you are to developments in scientific learning. But if the Hartford Courant were to take this thesis — which was supervised by someone whose day job is at the DOD (hint, hint) — and do the thorough job the paper did on the 1992 research at Ft. Detrick — I’d say there is a Pulitzer in the works.